Bison at Grand Canyon

RELH

Long Time Member
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The National Park Service (NPS) is looking for volunteers to assist in killing hundreds of bison on the North Rim of Arizona's Grand Canyon National Park.

In cooperation with the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD), NPS posted a webpage seeking individuals "skilled" in "bison removal."

Applications open to the public at 12 a.m. local time on May 3 through 11:59 p.m. on May 4, according to the site.
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Why can't they sell hunting license to hunters to thin the herd out. They reduce the herd as they want and can make money for the park as they do it. Makes you wonder if they are that much anti hunting.
RELH
 
Now That’s F’n bull sh&T!
transplant them to a state where they have enough land, then draw tags for the next years to hunt
 
I wonder if they are going to shoot them, then let they lay where they fall and rot for the vultures.

Eel I have killed 4 bison and the meat is great if you take a young one, 3 years old or younger. The first one I took in South Dakota was a older bull of around 2,000 pounds on the hoof. He was a bit tough and the wife said no more trophy bulls. Shoot the tender meat ones from now on.
RELH
 
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FAQs address many of the questions posed here. This sounds like a pretty wild chance to kill a bison.
 
There was a pretty good episode on the built to hunt podcast about this with the NPS Lady running this program. Basically they already have trapped, relocated and tried other measures but the Buffalo are moving deeper into the park than ever before. The state is going to conduct the drawing and whoever gets selected will get to kill 1 Buffalo and be able to take it. This year there will only be 12 Buffalo removed. They want the heard down to 200 animals.
 
The optics of this are terrible. I would have loved to have been at the meeting where THIS was the best idea.

Why are the optics terrible? Of course the antis will hate it, but they hate anything that has to do with an animal dying in any other way than starving to death or by the jaws of a wolf or grizzly.

I think this is a cool opportunity for someone that wants a chance at a bison. Seems like they’ve tried other measures that are not working, so they’re giving “skilled volunteers” (IE, hunters) a chance to come help with the problem.
 
Why are the optics terrible? Of course the antis will hate it, but they hate anything that has to do with an animal dying in any other way than starving to death or by the jaws of a wolf or grizzly.

I think this is a cool opportunity for someone that wants a chance at a bison. Seems like they’ve tried other measures that are not working, so they’re giving “skilled volunteers” (IE, hunters) a chance to come help with the problem.
Because it’s a public spectacle. This is how you end up with woof’s managing game animals.

There is a big long AzG&F list of interested parties who would love to help.

There are any number of “fair” ways to do this. But as always, the feds have to turn everything into a crisis. Don’t think for a minute someone in the NPS with an agenda isn’t cheering the bad press.
 
Bluehair, is it getting bad press? I certainly don’t follow all news agencies, particularly those that might be prone to freaking out about this. The articles I’ve read have simply been informational, not criticism about it. I’ve seen more criticism on this forum than anywhere else.

Not entirely shocking, since Monster Muleys seems to be turning into an anti-hunting forum.
 
Too much hand holding for me. I really dont care for some non hunting NPS employee breathing down my backside. And sounds like I might get 5 lbs of meat.
 
I wonder if they are going to shoot them, then let they lay where they fall and rot for the vultures.

Eel I have killed 4 bison and the meat is great if you take a young one, 3 years old or younger. The first one I took in South Dakota was a older bull of around 2,000 pounds on the hoof. He was a bit tough and the wife said no more trophy bulls. Shoot the tender meat ones from now on.
RELH
I had a neighbor butchered one and older cow, and he gave me some ribs and a few steaks. It was inedible, would chew a piece and it would just get bigger and bigger until I spit it out. Ask someone about how the Indians ate it, and he said they would boil it for days before trying to chew it. Never had a tougher piece of meat, bet my shoe soles would be better.
 
Got to agree with EVILNR and Cosmic. Too many rules and looking over your shoulder, and the bison meat I have been given was just plain tough! I will pass on this opportunity, y’all have at it!
 
I was going to post "Shuffle Off For Buffalo," an informative article I wrote in 1988 about AZ's bison herds. It's way too long to meet the 1000 character limit here, though. If anyone would like to read it, send me an email address in a PM, and I'll send a Text file.
 
You guys will find anything to cry about. If they didn’t offer this option and said they were going to shoot them you would cry that they should open it for hunting.

and the guys crying about the taste of Buffalo. Well it’s not the buffalos fault you don’t know how to cook. Maybe have your wife cook it next time.
 
And why don’t they transfer them to the Indian Reservations and charge high dollar prices for us to come hunt them?
I’m for that! I’d love to hunt one of those great big ole shaggies

Joe
 
And why don’t they transfer them to the Indian Reservations and charge high dollar prices for us to come hunt them?
I’m for that! I’d love to hunt one of those great big ole shaggies

Joe
The Indians that want Buffalo have Buffalo.
 
I hope anyone filmed explains the benefit of hunter take, vs sharpshooter
Perhaps you don't understand, this is the sharpshooter option. The Arizona Game and Fish opposed this for years, but the meetings with the feds were a complete waste of time. G&F wanted to allow real hunters (that have applied for these hunts for decades in many instances) to have this opportunity, but the Park Service just wanted to slaughter them rather than allow actual fair chase hunters to hunt inside the park.
 
A lot of people are going to be sorry they drew before it's over... :D

"The work is expecting to be grueling, done on foot at elevations of 8,000 feet or higher at the Grand Canyon’s North Rim. Volunteers can’t use motorized transportation or stock animals to retrieve the bison that can weigh up to 2,000 pounds and will have to field dress them with help from a support crew. Snow could also be a factor."
 
If I'm drawn, I'll worry about the details.

12 "hunter/shooters" drawn out of 45,000 applicants is NOT a realistic chance. Better odds than the mega-lottery, worst than a regular buffalo drawing but it was free to apply so what the he!!.

I'm not planning my Fall hunts around this drawing! haha

Zeke
 
The way I read it, the 12 drawn will be doing the grunt work of butchering and hauling the meat. Not "shooting" but I've been wrong before.
 
The park service did a similar “hunt” in North Dakota a few years back but for elk. A buddy did it and had a great time. Said their park service guy was a good hunter and they killed 5 elk in several days. I like this vs paying contractors. At least someone gets a memorable experience in beautiful country and some meat. Long odds for sure but I put in.
 
"The service has said it will only choose 12 participants to become a "skilled volunteer". These will be selected from a chosen pool of 25 using a random lottery system."

So, 12 "skilled volunteers" will kill hundreds of Bison? And they have to backpack them out?
 
M
"The service has said it will only choose 12 participants to become a "skilled volunteer". These will be selected from a chosen pool of 25 using a random lottery system."

So, 12 "skilled volunteers" will kill hundreds of Bison? And they have to backpack them out?

makes no sense but supposedly each volunteer is only going to kill 1 Bison, as told to one of the mods on the CWT forum. Maybe this is supposed to be a test run. Lots of unanswered questions.
 
"The service has said it will only choose 12 participants to become a "skilled volunteer". These will be selected from a chosen pool of 25 using a random lottery system."

So, 12 "skilled volunteers" will kill hundreds of Bison? And they have to backpack them out?
I don't have the energy or desire to reasearch it further, so I'm only guessing here. Me thinks the press release might have been written rather poorly. Maybe the 12 volunteer number is meant to be per hunt, of which there are currently four scheduled. As for shooting only one bison, I think it said that each volunteer would be GIVEN one, not just be shooting one. But I've guessed wrong before; I just can't recall when it was. :rolleyes:

What kind of time commitment will be required of volunteers?
There will be 4 lethal removal operations during the pilot year 2021. Each period will last 5 days. Volunteers will be expected to attend training on the first day and will be expected to participate in a full week of work. Operational Periods are as follows: Sept 20-24, Sept 27-Oct1, Oct 18-22, Oct 25-29. Volunteers will not be able to select which operational period they are interested in participating in.
 
I doubt it will happen on schedule. Too many judges out there willing to issue at least a temporary injunction if a lawsuit is filed against the NFS.
Those Bison probably have a better chance of dying of old age than being shot by a "skilled volunteer"
 
Those Bison probably have a better chance of dying of old age than being shot by a "skilled volunteer"
Maybe not. They are already hunted -- sort of. BUT...they have to be killed outside the park. So the big draw to get them into a legal shooting area is salt. There's one guide who specializes in the bison hunts.

What has always baffled me is if they really want to get rid of them, why doesn't the AFGD simply sell tags OTC for ANY bison outside the park, perhaps to those who get drawn for deer. Instead, they trickle them out annually at ludicrous costs. No doubt, the bean counters ar the AGFD know a cash cow when they see it.
 
Maybe not. They are already hunted -- sort of. BUT...they have to be killed outside the park. So the big draw to get them into a legal shooting area is salt. There's one guide who specializes in the bison hunts.

What has always baffled me is if they really want to get rid of them, why doesn't the AFGD simply sell tags OTC for ANY bison outside the park, perhaps to those who get drawn for deer. Instead, they trickle them out annually at ludicrous costs. No doubt, the bean counters ar the AGFD know a cash cow when they see it.
Put Tony in charge. He knows more about these Bison than the National Park Service does.
 
Put Tony in charge. He knows more about these Bison than the National Park Service does.
No thank you! But I have researched & written about them quite a bit over the years.

BTW, there are supposedly elk on the north side of the GC that the AGFD don't want there. They are thought to have migrated there down from Utah. So in an effort to get rid of them, they issue 750 any-elk permits for $35 ea. as a MINIMAL OCCURRENCE (GENERAL) ELK hunt.

They estimate the population to be about 50 total in the 12 & 13 units. I have yet to hear of anyone killing one.
 
Here's an article I wrote in 1988. It was prior to the release of the bison to roam as they wished throughout the area, including the park.


458b02e767c9179d[1].jpg

SHUFFLE OFF FOR BUFFALO

Copyright by Tony Mandile

Charles Jones roamed much of the West and Midwest during the late 1800s and the early 1900s. His earned the nickname "Buffalo" because of his skill at hunting the American bison during the time the big animals roamed the plains by the millions.

Although Jones isn't exactly a household name, his legacy to Arizona is still quite evident today. At the turn of the century, he decided to introduce elk and buffalo into Arizona, choosing the North Kaibab Plateau as the site for his experiment.

Jones planned to sell the hunting rights for both species. He also intended to crossbreed the bison with domestic cattle, winding up with a hybrid animal called either a cattalo or beefalo. Supposedly, these critters would provide the same benefits of beef cattle but would be much hardier, capable of living through weather and on land unsuited to domestic stock. Though the elk transplant never materialized, Jones did bring buffalo to Arizona.

Jones and his friend, lion hunter Jim Owens, had captured a herd of buffalo in the Texas panhandle in the 1880s and moved them to Kansas. Later, part of the herd wound up in Monterey, California. Jones transferred 35 from there by way of Lund, Utah to the North Kaibab in 1905. He brought another 87 from the Kansas herd to Arizona a year later.

Jones eventually became disenchanted with raising buffalo and rounded up as many as possible in 1909. He drove the buffs into Utah and sold them. Unknowingly, however, he left some strays behind. These became the property of the Grand Canyon Cattle Company, owned by none other than Jimmie Owens.

By 1927, when the state purchased the herd for $10,000, the stray buffs had increased to 98 animals. The herds inhabiting Houserock Valley and the Raymond Ranch, established in 1945, are the descendants of those.

According to the historians, the American bison might have existed in Arizona during prehistoric times. In contrast, estimates of their numbers living in the rest of the country during the 19th century often mention billions. In reality a truer estimate would be in the millions. When Lewis and Clark explored westward, they told of masses of buffalo, sometimes numbering more than 20,000 within sight of their wagons. The explorers also related how the huge herds darkened the Great Plains and seemingly made the land look like it was constantly moving. Other accounts tell of the concern the settlers had for their own safety as they occasionally used up several days moving their wagons through a single herd.

Before the white man began his move West, the buffalo's only enemy was the American Indian. For them, the big mammal meant survival. The meat from one could feed an entire village for days. The hides became clothing and shelter. Because the buffalo provided these basic necessities of life and were so numerous, the tribes depended on them. They followed a particular herd for months at a time and developed ways to harvest the beasts with the primitive weapons available to them.

Stampeding a herd to its death was a favorite technique. Indians on horseback drove the animals off a steep cliff or into dead-end canyons where they systematically dispatched them with spears or arrows. Some Indian hunters covered themselves with a buffalo hide and stalked into the herd or waited patiently for one to come to their imitation call of a calf in distress. Yet, while the Indians used the buffalo to survive, the white man was responsible for its downfall.

Expeditions, made up of hunters from eastern America and Europe, came out west with the express idea of slaughter in mind. To them, the final tally of dead bison on the ground was a sign of their success.

When train travel across the Great Plains later became a reality, the slaughter continued. While crews laid the tracks for the iron horses, hired buffalo hunters kept them supplied with meat. Usually, they removed only the choice parts and left the rest to rot or as food for scavengers.

Once completed, the railroads provided a new sport. Shooting the animals from a slow-moving train turned into the entertainment of choice for westward-bound passengers. Naturally, given the weapons of the day and inexperience of those shooting the large creatures, many buffalo died a lingering death after being wounded.

Finally, in the 1870s, a new boom helped put the American bison closer to extinction. With the advent of a revolutionary tanning process, the trade in buffalo hides expanded. The leather was far more durable than cowhide, and the grand buffalo population made it fairly easy to obtain. Both the white man and Indian quickly entered the hide-trading market. While the Indians continued to use the entire buffalo, the white hunters usually removed the hide and left the rest. Most were shipped off to Europe for tanning.

In 1884, congress finally passed legislation protecting the buffalo from further damage. Unfortunately, by then it was too late. The slaughter had taken its toll earlier. Already in 1883, few bison remained on the Great Plains. Some historians say the population in the U.S. had dropped below 800. Since than, the buffalo number has increased to about 30,000 in North America. Thanks to Charlie Jones, about 200 now live in Arizona.

The first state-authorized buffalo hunt occurred in 1927 at Houserock. The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD), the new custodians for the animals, handed out 17 special permits and took the lucky hunters onto the buffalo range to kill an animal. Every year until 1961, the department allowed the state's sportsmen to cull the excess animals in this way.

Continued in Reply....
 
bison3opt.jpg

Although most fully grown bison average between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds, some can weigh 2,500 pounds or more. Consequently, killing one in the field was merely the beginning of the hard work to follow. The animal had to be skinned, quartered and transported back to the ranch headquarters. Considering the weight and bulk of the buffalo, this sometimes was difficult. In 1962, no doubt to ease some of the post-kill chore, the AGFD drastically changed the hunting method. The result was a hunt more appropriately called a "shoot."

Each hunter who drew a permit also received a date and time for the "shoot." The department then rounded up the excess animals for culling and placed them in a large corral. Here, the "hunters" waited in three-man relays to shoot in the order their permits specified.

The first hunter took his choice of three animals that were moved into the shooting pen. The second killed one of the remaining two buffalo, and the last hunter wound up with the third. A top shooter from the game department served as a back-up if a hunter only wounded his target.

For the price of the permit, the AGFD provided the skinning and processing and gave the hunter the head, hide and one quarter of the meat. He also had the option of buying the rest of the meat for the same price per quarter as the permit fee. If he passed, anyone willing to pay the price could buy the meat.

In 1973, the corral shoot became the focus of much controversy when the movie "Bless The Beasts And The Children" showed in America's theaters. The AGFD had allowed the filming to take place during one of the hunts. Unfortunately, the filmmakers had shrouded their intentions in a bit of mystery. The final editing made the hunt appear like an inhumane slaughter and raised the hackles of people across the nation.

In reality, though truly not a hunt, the procedure was efficient. Dispatching a wounded buffalo was easy, permit holders had a 100 percent success and the harvesting of surplus animals was exact. Because of the criticism, however, the department reacted by returning to the earlier method.

Another change came about in 1981. The price of a permit went up, and hunters kept the entire animal. The "Catch 22" was each hunter was responsible for taking care of his trophy; no longer did the department provide skinning and processing.

A year later, the first REAL buffalo hunt occurred at Houserock Valley. A permit holder no longer would have a game department employee holding his hand in the field. The entire process of killing a buff and getting it out of the field became the hunter's responsibility.

Because fences surround Houserock Ranch to keep the buffalo from roaming across northern Arizona, the hunt sounds quite easy. In fact, it can be very difficult. The ranch encompasses about 60,000 acres, including some rugged hills, deep canyons and large stand of trees. To make matters worst, the Arizona Wilderness Act of 1984 changed a large chunk of the ranch into part of a national wilderness area --- closing it to vehicle use. Thus, a hunter within the wilderness boundaries must either ride a horse or walk. Of course, when he kills a buffalo he must get it out the same way.

At Raymond Ranch, the first hunt occurred in 1950. Because of its size --- about 14,700 acres --- all hunts remain like the original one at Houserock; an AGFD employee goes afield with the hunter to help him harvest a buff.

Beginning with the 1989 season, nonresident hunters may take part in the state buffalo hunt for the first time. The new regulation limits the number of nonresident permits to 10 percent of the total available in any calendar year. It also stipulates no more than 50 percent or two tags for a hunt number will go to out-of-staters.

Fortunately for residents, the nonresident fee might discourage some applicants. The price for an adult bull or any buffalo is $3,750. One specifically for a cow will cost $2,250, and a calf permit will be $1,200. In comparison, a resident pays $750, $450 and $240 respectively.

The odds of drawing a tag are not as bad as some people believe. Although the permits usually average about 50 a year, first-choice applicants have about a one-in-six chance of being drawn. Compared to some of the elk and sheep hunts, those are pretty decent odds.

Arizona's buffalo population averages about 200, about equally divided between the two ranches. The number of permits normally reflect how many animals must be harvested so the herd remains within the limits their habitat can support.

In 1987, the department authorized 41 permits --- 26 at Raymond Ranch and 15 at Houserock. First choice applications numbered 217. Last year, about 300 hunters vied for the 61 permits available for the October season.

Although the buffalo population and present day hunting pales compared to what they were a century ago, we should be thankful the magnificent animal still survives. We should also be thankful to Charlie "Buffalo" Jones. Without his folly, the bison, in all probability, never would have set foot in Arizona.
 
No thank you! But I have researched & written about them quite a bit over the years.

BTW, there are supposedly elk on the north side of the GC that the AGFD don't want there. They are thought to have migrated there down from Utah. So in an effort to get rid of them, they issue 750 any-elk permits for $35 ea. as a MINIMAL OCCURRENCE (GENERAL) ELK hunt.

They estimate the population to be about 50 total in the 12 & 13 units. I have yet to hear of anyone killing one.
Hi Tony.
12 years ago, during a junior doe hunt, we went to Jacob Lake for gas, stopped by the checkout station. We saw a full sized Dodge 4X4 there, looked like a low rider, due to the buffalo in the bed of the truck. Wish I'd had a camera.
 
Hi Tony.
12 years ago, during a junior doe hunt, we went to Jacob Lake for gas, stopped by the checkout station. We saw a full sized Dodge 4X4 there, looked like a low rider, due to the buffalo in the bed of the truck. Wish I'd had a camera.
They are indeed large critters. I have been up close & personal with them a bunch during many years of taking photos both in YNP and at the National Bison Range in MT.

The latter was one of my favorite places to visit. Each year, they do a roundup of all the bison onthe place for health checks and also for culling. It's a big deal. I normally planned my visits there just prior to the roundup, which usually was in late Sept./early Oct.

One year about 35-37 back :rolleyes:, while I was standing outside my truck taking pics of a pronghorn buck, another guy pulled up to also take pics. We talked a bit, then he introduced himself as the mayor of the nearby town of Ravali. He had some pull with the USF&W folks who ran the Range; he invited me to ride along on the round-up. It was blast. The last push was driving the whole bunch over a hill above the corrals, which turned out to be a near stampede. Even though I was on an outer edge near the tailend, being on horseback that close to all those big beasts was a bit unnerving, to say the least. And breathing all the dust wasn't fun either.

Here's another one:


BuffBull2opt.jpg
 
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Just FYI, in the one interview/report the State clarified that they would be removing the total over several years. So this first year they were anticipating the volunteers would likely remove 10-20 buffalo. Then next year same process would remove more, and more. They suggested that first year would be a smaller pool and they plan to increase the number of volunteers and bison until they meet the objective.

So no 12 guys are not gonna pack out a 100 bison etc.
 
Well, that should really prove effective in getting to the objective, at least if they can cull enough to stay ahead of the birthrate. :rolleyes:
 
Revolutionary concept. I’m living in the future. Or a stupidity vortex, I’m not sure.
The more I read about this so-called "cull," the more I think it's an attempt by the NPS & AGFD to conduct a hunt within the park each year under the guise of a necessary action to save the park. IOW, to skirt the 'no hunting' in a national park rule. That's why the requirements for the 'hunters' were put in but are fairly easy to meet. Even has the lottery feel. The only thing missing, tho, is a fee charged for the privilege.
 
Didn’t they already have the drawing for the lucky cull(ers)?
They were supposed to call or email me to let me know that I drew a cull tag(?) but they didn’t.
I’m just so sure I drew that I’m simply going to show up and start blasting! ✅? that should work out okay, I’m sure. ?
Zeke
 
The more I read about this so-called "cull," the more I think it's an attempt by the NPS & AGFD to conduct a hunt within the park each year under the guise of a necessary action to save the park. IOW, to skirt the 'no hunting' in a national park rule. That's why the requirements for the 'hunters' were put in but are fairly easy to meet. Even has the lottery feel. The only thing missing, tho, is a fee charged for the privilege.


Is that a bad thing?
 
Is that a bad thing?
Could be. Do we really want to pimp out the animals in our natl parks? Is the current fee structure so inadequate that they need to charge me a preference point fee to save the park system?

I still think this is a festering boil grown in a NPS office somewhere so that the prog’s have a rallying point.

In the meantime, where do I sign up for a RMNP elk tag?
 
Didn’t they already have the drawing for the lucky cull(ers)?
They were supposed to call or email me to let me know that I drew a cull tag(?) but they didn’t.
I’m just so sure I drew that I’m simply going to show up and start blasting! ✅? that should work out okay, I’m sure. ?
Zeke
Point creep.
 
Could be. Do we really want to pimp out the animals in our natl parks? Is the current fee structure so inadequate that they need to charge me a preference point fee to save the park system?

I still think this is a festering boil grown in a NPS office somewhere so that the prog’s have a rallying point.

In the meantime, where do I sign up for a RMNP elk tag?
I'm all for "pimping out" animals in the National Parks if its for free. I think I like the NP system of hunting draw better than the UDWR buffalo hunt on Antelope Island. No application fee, anyone can apply, no point game, and no tag fee. I guess I like cheap pimps.
 
I'm all for "pimping out" animals in the National Parks if its for free. I think I like the NP system of hunting draw better than the UDWR buffalo hunt on Antelope Island. No application fee, anyone can apply, no point game, and no tag fee. I guess I like cheap pimps.
Going from memory, I think there is a fee ( maybe $65-75) for the background check, but that's it.
 
But that’s not an “application fee,” like johnnyutah stated. Just like an over the counter tag, you pay for the tag, but there is no application fee.

I’m still of the opinion that while I understand that everyone isn’t going to want to do this, I don’t know why hunters are complaining about another opportunity for hunters to hunt. Especially an animal that the vast majority of us will never get the chance. I say good on them, and go have fun for anyone that gets their name drawn.

Ive said it in other threads on other topics, but these “hunting forums,” Monster Muleys in particular, seem to have become the most anti-hunting communities around. It’s so odd!
 
I didn't know about the background check and associated cost. That's kind of weird, but I'd take it over the $1000+ antelope island tag plus associated bonus point fees.
 
I received my "dear John" letter today. Dang it!

I was so positive that I'd draw because the odds were so good.
But.... I got my money's worth out of it just talking about bison...which are pretty cool.

Zeke
 
Somebody somewhere is drawing up a plan to ”re” introduce wolves to naturally control them. No doubt they will as soon as they chew through the deers.
 
I still recall the days of "Bless the Beasts & the Children." The uproar from that film changed how the AGFD 'managed' the then captive herd at Houserock -- the same one that now roams freely on the N. Kaibab.
 
I vaguely remember that. I was more of a Heyduke fan.
The film producers hood-winked the AGFD.

Here's a snippet of SHUFFLE OFF FOR BUFFALO, an article I wrote many years ago prior to the bison being allowed to roam wherever they wished:

The first state-authorized buffalo hunt occurred in 1927 at Houserock. The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD), the new custodians for the animals, handed out 17 special permits and took the lucky hunters onto the buffalo range to kill an animal. Every year until 1961, the department allowed the state's sportsmen to cull the excess animals in this way.

Although most fully grown bison average between 1,500 and 2,000 pounds, some can weigh 2,500 pounds or more. Consequently, killing one in the field was merely the beginning of the hard work to follow. The animal had to be skinned, quartered and transported back to the ranch headquarters. Considering the weight and bulk of the buffalo, this sometimes was difficult. In 1962, no doubt to ease some of the post-kill chore, the AGFD drastically changed the hunting method. The result was a hunt more appropriately called a "shoot."

Each hunter who drew a permit also received a date and time for the "shoot." The department then rounded up the excess animals for culling and placed them in a large corral. Here, the "hunters" waited in three-man relays to shoot in the order their permits specified.

The first hunter took his choice of three animals that were moved into the shooting pen. The second killed one of the remaining two buffalo, and the last hunter wound up with the third. A top shooter from the game department served as a back-up if a hunter only wounded his target.

For the price of the permit, the AGFD provided the skinning and processing and gave the hunter the head, hide and one quarter of the meat. He also had the option of buying the rest of the meat for the same price per quarter as the permit fee. If he passed, anyone willing to pay the price could buy the meat.

In 1973, the corral shoot became the focus of much controversy when the movie "Bless The Beasts And The Children" showed in America's theaters. The AGFD had allowed the filming to take place during one of the hunts. Unfortunately, the filmmakers had shrouded their intentions in a bit of mystery. The final editing made the hunt appear like an inhumane slaughter and raised the hackles of people across the nation.

In reality, though truly not a hunt, the procedure was efficient. Dispatching a wounded buffalo was easy, permit holders had a 100 percent success and the harvesting of surplus animals was exact. Because of the criticism, however, the department reacted by returning to the earlier method.

Another change came about in 1981. The price of a permit went up, and hunters kept the entire animal. The "Catch 22" was each hunter was responsible for taking care of his trophy; no longer did the department provide skinning and processing.

A year later, the first REAL buffalo hunt occurred at Houserock Valley. A permit holder no longer would have a game department employee holding his hand in the field. The entire process of killing a buff and getting it out of the field became the hunter's responsibility.

Because fences surround Houserock Ranch to keep the buffalo from roaming across northern Arizona, the hunt sounds quite easy. In fact, it can be very difficult. The ranch encompasses about 60,000 acres, including some rugged hills, deep canyons and large stands of trees. To make matters worst, the Arizona Wilderness Act of 1984 changed a large chunk of the ranch into part of a national wilderness area --- closing it to vehicle use. Thus, a hunter within the wilderness boundaries must either ride a horse or walk. Of course, when he kills a buffalo he must get it out the same way.
 

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